Fading Melodies
by Cirtolthiel Greenleaf
Summary: When a young elven princess is forced from her home, she finds herself in Mirkwood where a young Legolas is just starting his journey.  What will happen when he is told to take her with him on the Journey?  Legolas/OC; Aragorn/OC
1. Prologue: The End

**Hello , everyone! Cirtolthiel here. This is my first attempt at a Lord of the Rings fan-fic. I have high hopes for this story, and hopefully I will keep up with it. I do go to college full time, so I don't know how often I will update. I'll do my best though! Please, leave me comments so I know how I am doing and how you like the story. Thank you for reading!**

**Note: Characters and such are from the mind of J.R. Tolkein, except the ones I claim. In this opening, all characters are mine.  
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><p><em>Ada<em>! (Father!)" The young elf's voice was filled with terror and sadness. "I won't go. I want to stay…and help fight!" She ducked as an orc slashed its sword. The blow missed and struck the ground. A small cry of fear came from the elf as she thrust her small knife into the orc's stomach. The vile creature fell back with a snarl, ready to renew its attack. The elf's grey eyes betrayed her unease with fighting and the orc gave a sneer.

"Aerlinniel!" Her father's cry interrupted her scream as the orc thrust its sword forward. Her father's blade knocked the orc aside before plunging through the creature. The young Aerlinniel cowered behind her father. "You must leave! _Heniach nin_? (Do you understand me?) I can't lose you to these creatures!"

Aerlinniel shook her head rapidly back and forth, her long blonde hair swaying. "_Lau _(No)_,_ I won't leave!" she shrieked even as she was hit from behind. The blunt end of the blade only knocked her to the ground.

"Sadron!" Aerlinniel's father yelled out. A tall male elf wielding a bow ran towards where father and daughter stood, surrounded by orcs.

"Yes, King Beriadan?" the male asked, not pausing as he pulled out a sword and began cutting down the creatures that pressed in upon them.

Theirs was a travelling company of elves; they never stayed in one place too long. They had been on the way to visit the elves of Mirkwood, to rejoice the crowning of the new Prince. The orcs had followed them and attacked when some of the company was out gathering food and items for shelter.

"Take my daughter on to Mirkwood. Keep her safe," Beriadan stated and turned to bring a particularly large orc down.

"_Lau, Ada,_ _Hain ú-'rogon._ (No, father, I do not fear them.)Do not make me go," she said softly, tears falling from her eyes.

Beriadan gave a sorrowful look to his daughter. "_Goheno nin. Le melon. No in elenath_ _hîlar nan hâd gîn. _(I am sorry. I love you. May all stars shine upon your path.)" He gave a heavy sigh, and turned to join back in the fight as Sadron pulled Aerlinniel toward his horse.

"_Ae anírach, Ada. Le melon," _(If you wish, Father. I love you.) Aerlinniel murmured as she was swung onto the horse. The last thing she heard was her father's cry of "_Gurth 'ni yrch_!" (Death to the orcs!) Then, she passed out behind Sadron as they rode as fast as they could towards Mirkwood and its shelter.


	2. Chapter 1: You Vex Me

**Welcome back! I hope you are still sticking through this. This new character, Pandothiel, is actually based off my best friend who has helped me through many things. She knows who she is. But, in this chapter, Legolas comes to play, and Aerlinniel is annoyed by those around her. Thank you for reading!**

**Note: J.R. Tolkien owns the character Legolas and the Lord of the Rings franchise. All other characters and ideas are from the mind of Cirtolthiel. Thank you!**

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><p>It had been many years since the day that Aerlinniel and Sadron rode madly into the realm of Mirkwood. The young girl had been almost catatonic, refusing to speak to anyone. She many times seemed in a trance until she would break away in the middle of the night trying to return to where she had last seen her father. She knew he was alive. She had to keep believing.<p>

Tonight, Aerlinniel stood on a balcony at the mountainside castle at Mirkwood. She rested her head on her hands as she leaned against the balcony. She gave a deep sigh, for she was still full of sadness. It took a lot to get her to talk because she felt she did not fit in here at Mirkwood.

Sadron had explained the situation to the King then quickly left young Aerlinniel alone in the strange new place that she had attempted to adapt to. But, her lifestyle had been much different than the royalty here seemed to comprehend.

"_Goheno nin, Ada. Aníron gladhad, _though_ Im gosta." _(Forgive me, Father. I want to laugh, though I'm afraid.) The young elfess said this statement to the wind. It was a ritual for her, to talk to her father at night, when the stars could clearly be seen overhead. Her eyes clouded with sadness as a faint teardrop fell and hit the stone of the railing holding her up.

"_Daro i. _(Stop that.) There is no need for tears on a night as beautiful as this," a lilting male voice said from behind her.

Aerlinniel jumped, and quickly turned around. She had her knife in her hand, ready to defend herself. No one ever entered her room. They knew enough by now that she was prone to snap an insult and then go back to feeling sorry for herself. She saw that it was the crown Prince of Mirkwood, Legolas Greenleaf. The female elf frowned at him, then muttered, "_Gwanno ereb nin." _(Leave me alone.)

Legolas gave a laugh. "You've been silent as the sky, Princess," he said calmly. He strode forward to stand beside her, and Aerlinniel quickly took a step to the side. It was her policy not to get close to anyone. After all, why form friendships when she would be leaving as soon as her father found his way to Mirkwood?

"_Dôl lost lîn,_ (Your head is empty)" she said back quietly. "I am not the Princess. My father may have been King of my people, but I am not crowned. Therefore I am not Princess." Aerlinniel glanced at him, her head raised high, but then turned back to gaze at the stars.

"_Findesselya vanya, _(Your hair is pretty.)" Legolas said, ignoring her last comment.

"Excuse me?"

"I have found that when a lady is upset, a compliment usually makes her feel better," the Prince stated.

Aerlinniel rolled her eyes, her grip tightening on the balcony rail. "Have you come here only to vex me, Prince Legolas? Or do you just want to feel better about yourself, so you come to taunt the not crowned Princess, but still the only Princess of her people who has no idea what happened to her _ada_?" She paused, glaring at him. "I despise being here. Is that what you want to hear? _Aníron gwanna, _(I wish I could leave) but I promised my _ada_ I'd stay here until he came back." She sighed, almost exhausted after speaking that much.

Legolas was quiet for a moment. "You are not the only one who has had this happen to you. There is another, the same age, who was attacked by orcs. She was the only survivor of her entire people. Maybe you should meet her," he said, and turned to leave.

"_Ti tállbe Orch, _(Go kiss an orc)" Aerlinniel muttered, not bothering to look to see if he had left. She felt a hand on her shoulder that forcibly turned her around to face Legolas. "Oh, you were still here?" she stated sarcastically.

"Have you no manners?" Legolas said, his voice betraying the anger he felt. "We have hosted you here for years, and you cannot even give the courtesy to be kind? That's just wrong. Maybe you should leave."

Aerlinniel pushed his hand from her shoulder. "Touch me again, and I will be forced to cut your hair off," she muttered. "Besides, no one would miss me."

"Only because you have not made yourself one to be missed," Legolas said, before he walked out the door.

Aerlinniel walked to her bed, and fell down onto it. No one understood how hard this was. He just didn't get it. Legolas had an easy life; the life of a Prince. But she? She was a lowly Princess who never had the chance to be crowned and probably never would get the chance. With that last thought, Aerlinniel burst into quiet sobs that were muffled by her pillow.

The next morning, Aerlinniel awoke to a knock on the door to her chambers. She groaned and rolled over, throwing a pillow on the floor by accident. She squinted at the light coming through the window. Another knock sounded on the door, and Aerlinniel sat up, with a glare at the door. "Go away," she said lightly as she walked to her mirror to brush her hair.

"_Le suilon_ (I gree thee)," a female voice said quietly from the other side of the door. "Are you decent so that I may come in?"

It was obvious to Aerlinniel that whoever this elf was, she wasn't going away. "In a moment," she stated, as she finished her hair and grabbed a blue dress to put on. She pulled her hair back into a long braid, and then opened the door. "_Man anírach cerin an le?_ (What can I do for you?)"

The other elf took a step back, and dipped her head in greeting. Her long brown curled hair fell about her face, shielding her green eyes. "I am Pandothiel. Forgive me, I prefer to speak in the way of the humans."

Aerlinniel crossed her arms. "I said what can I do for you?"

The brown haired female glanced around Aerlinniel's quarters. "Your living space is quite comfortable," she stated, then continued, "Prince Legolas suggested I come to speak to you. He said you seemed to need a friend."

"Pandothiel? Correct?" Aerlinniel stated.

"Yes."

"If I wanted a friend, I would have been seeking one out."

Pandothiel sighed. "Do you know what your problem is? You won't give anyone a chance. Will you at least listen to my story of how I got here?"

Aerlinniel closed her eyes, then nodded. "Enter."

Pandothiel gave a small smile. "I warn you, though, it is not a happy tale."

"Of course not," Aerlinniel stated, as she sat down on a chair on the balcony. "If it was, you would not be here."

Pandothiel only nodded, as she took the seat next to Aerlinniel.

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><p><strong>This next chapter, we will get to hear the story of Pandothiel. I need to tweak it a bit, but I should have it up within the next few days. Sorry if it's a little late. <strong>

**Cirtolthiel.**


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